First Steps
by YouandMe1105
Summary: Late for work, Mouth gets to witness something special.  Sequel to More than that.


_**Title: First Steps**_

_Summary: Late for work, Mouth gets to witness something special. Sequel to More than that. _

Disclaimer: I don't own any of this material.

"Honey, have you seen my tie?"

He was late. More than anything, he hated being late. But know that he was thinking about it, he really hated Felix, even after all these years. Not to mention Chase and that Nick guy she'd told him about...

Shaking his head, Marvin McFadden continued his search for his tie. But it wasn't just any tie that he was looking for. He had probably close to fifty of them hanging right in front of his face. Any number of them would be just fine for the meeting he had to attend today but he wanted the one that eluded him.

"Brooke? Did you wash my tie?" he called, sticking his head out of the closet so she'd be able to hear him, wherever she was in the house. Receiving no answer, he resumed his quest to find the missing accessory. After looking through the entire collection of them for the third time, he concluded that it wasn't in there.

Releasing an exasperated sigh, he made his way to the laundry room, hoping that maybe Brooke had hung it up in there. Giving the room a quick look over, he eliminated it as a possible hiding place for the elusive object.

Bemused, he wandered back into the bedroom. Glancing around the room, hoping to spot it, he was struck with a sudden thought. His gaze snapped to the headboard, to the two ties wrapped around the adjoining posts. No, neither of the ones that he and Brooke used the night before last was his lucky one. He could feel his ears turning red as he remembered that night. He couldn't thank Karen enough for watching Elizabeth that evening.

He was beginning to think that maybe he'd lost his good luck charm. He had worn that tie when the Ravens had won the State Championship and again when he'd proposed to Brooke. The fact that she said yes made that tie incredibly lucky, in his opinion. As he bent down to look underneath the bed, the room was filled with the sounds of "Baby Got Back". He hastily retrieved his cell phone from his pocket, flipping it open.

"Hello?"

"You're late!" screamed the voice on the other end.

He quickly held the phone a good distance from his ear, trying to avoid any permanent damage to his hearing. Bradley, one of the new guys who he was assigned to help out, was possibly the most tense person he'd ever met.

"Yes, Bradley, I'm aware that I'm late." Getting up off the floor, he walked through the house while listening to his understudy complain about everything that was going wrong with his day. Briefly, he wondered if he could trade Bradley to one of his co-workers also helping train newcomers. Bradley may be the most qualified but he'd rather deal with somebody who was calmer on a day-to-day basis. He was amazed that Bradley hadn't given himself a heart attack yet.

Reaching the living room, he leaned up against the doorway, his wife sitting with her back to him. "Brooke, have you seen my..."

Bradley's complaints were just background noise now as he watched the scene before him. His lucky tie was clasped between the tiny fingers of his adopted daughter, as she walked unsteadily towards Brooke, who held the other end of it.

"How long has she been doing that?" he whispered.

"She was standing for awhile but only started walking when you came in." Brooke smiled at him, her dimples appearing in full force.

"Those were her first steps and we didn't get any pictures?"

Brooke shook her head. "It doesn't matter, as long as we saw them."

Moving over and sitting down next to her, he reached out, pulling Elizabeth onto his knee. "I guess you're right," he said, tickling Elizabeth's sides, causing her to giggle.

"Of course I'm right," Brooke said, giving him one of her trademark winks before extracting the phone from his hand so he could hold the toddler with both. She held the phone to her ear, listening to Bradley complain for a few seconds before cutting him off. "Hello Bradley."

"Mrs. McFadden?" Brooke smirked as she heard him clear his throat nervously. "How are you? I was just telling your husband how much I enjoy working with him." She held back a laugh, knowing that that wasn't even remotely close to being the truth. She had met Bradley on several occasions and she doubted he enjoyed working for anybody.

"I'm afraid Marvin won't be able to make it in today, Bradley; is that a problem? Excellent. Take care of yourself." Closing the phone before the younger man could answer, she turned it off and set it down on a nearby table.

"Why did you do that?" Mouth asked, handing Elizabeth over to Brooke.

"Because you work too hard. If I hadn't had your tie, you'd be there right now. The hours you've been putting in are insane and you've barely spent time with us since you got promoted," Brooke replied, trying to make him understand. "If you don't slow down you're going to miss the important things in Lizzy's life."

Rubbing his face with his hands, he knew she was right. He'd been working so much lately that the days were blending together. "I just want to make them proud, you know? I feel the need to do everything I can to give Elizabeth a good life, because I know they would have done the same."

Brooke gave him a quick kiss, knowing exactly how he felt. She'd done the same thing when they first got Lizzy, working non-stop to provide for the new addition to their lives. "I know. But all work and no play makes Mouth a dull boy." Nudging him with her shoulder, she nodded towards the doorway. "Now go get changed. There's a carnival in town and I want you to win me a big stuffed animal."

Chuckling at her excitement, he was glad to see more of the old Brooke returning. Getting up to follow his wife's order, he noticed that Elizabeth was chewing on the end of her new toy.

So much for his lucky tie.


End file.
